Opportunity to get statements in writing from the Secretary of State re FiT

[Worcester]

As some of you may know, I have a number of influential contacts. They have offered to raise pertinent questions when the change is announced, that the Secreatry of State will have to answer in full in writing.

It may take a couple of weeks to get the written answer, however because of who will ask it he has no choice.

Ther wil be an uproar in the chamber when it is announced, the front bench will them take most of the time up and there may be 10-15 mins left for back benchers. Writing to your MP will tell them how you feel, and will help them to have the confidence to challenge, however this way we get the opportunity for some short of short term stability.

So, preferably without discussion, please post below your questions - bearing in mind what we actually want answers to, not what point you want to make, and I will forward them on.

This WILL have an impact, from experience of having done this in the past, this can actually be more powerful that lots of shouting in the chamber

 

[SRE]

I'm not very good at this but I'll have a go getting the ball rolling:

My customers have put their trust in this government offering one of the few guaranteed long term investments that benefits the economy and climate change all in one. How does the government propose to compensate my clients (many either retired or approaching retirement) who have cashed in their shares in preperation for their solar installation with a guaranteed Feed in Tariff. They are now left with reducing pensions to live on, in many cases now they have cashed in their shares no financial plan B and nowhere to put their savings because of the poor interest rates.

Gordon if you want to modify it that's fine - you get the point.

 

[MorganPVI]

The notice period sucks big donkey balls. Give us little installers a lifeline and extend the notice period to April. 6 weeks is NOT enough to install for exsiting deposit paying customers.

 

[BruceB]

Has the Government conducted a Regulatory Impact Assessment on these proposals and if so:
- How many customers who are already committed to contracts that will not be completed by 8 Dec 11 are going to be affected by the proposals and on average how much will each lose over the lifetime of their FIT contract?
- How many larger projects that are in gestation are likely to be abandoned and what is the likely nugatory cost to the customers and companies concerned.
- How many sole traders or small businesses who are going through the process to become MCS registered are going to have the rug pulled out from under them by these proposals and what is the average cost to each.
- What will be the effect on jobs of these proposals, particularly due to the harsh and almost immediate reduction in the tariff.
- Will the Government consider some transition arrangements or compensation measures for these categories in order the mitigate the costs individuals and companies are going to incur due to the rushed nature of this legislation?

Some quick thoughts.
It strikes me as ripe for Judicial Review if lots of people are penalised through no fault of their own.
But I cannot see who is well placed and with deep enough pockets to take the lead on that.

Regards
Bruce

 

[judgeelectrical]

I would plead for them not to alter the fits before the 31st March 2012. Allowing all sides to discuss and find a reasnoble level/change to the fit level/rules. I have a problem with multiple ownership ( ie rent a roof scheme). Why not limit fit ownership for individuals/companies to 100 KW, make it only possible to sell pv if you are MCS registered, cut out the unprofessional selling, make it only possible to claim fits if the propity is up to a certain standard of insulation.

It is my belief that the fits need to be changed, but need to be debated over a period of reasonable time(not 4 weeks)

There is no doubt that changes need to be made, but not at a hasty 50%, allowing no time for agreed/signed contract to be finished.

Pleasa consult the guys on the ground before making any decissions

 

[solarfred]

My tuppence worth...

Could the Minister concur that the country is in dire need of entrepreneurial spirit to start new and encourage existing businesses to generate growth in a sector of the economy which actually has shown clearly that it does produce jobs and support the country’s goals of reducing CO2 emissions and meet the EU targets.

With this in mind could the Minister explain how a business which has to invest it’s self financed capital (due to lack of institutional investment) will be able to survive the enormous loss of value in it’s stock which is earmarked for large projects which will now not be completed by the alleged deadline set in the Tariff payments reduction plan.

A good business will plan for the future and manage it’s income and expenditure based on the short term and long term environment so as to provide a quality service and a viable business which can grow sustainably. Would the Minister agree that a business cannot be expected to re assess it’s capital requirements or control it’s expenditure if the plans made for the next 5 -6 months are suddenly altered so that the current order book is cancelled at short notice by factors other than business risks. There is no secondary market for stock already paid for so negative cash flow will cause imminent failure of many businesses and their associated trades.

Would the Minister agree a reasonable period of adjustment would allow existing commitments to be completed and avoid a serious collapse in a growth sector.

In addition there is an email in my MP's inbox.

 

[dougalthedog]

Has the government considered that implementing two dramatic U-Turns on FITs in the space of a year is likely to bring the entire FIT scheme and microgeneration as a whole into disrepute as potential investors (consumers) will not trust that the government will continue to pay them for the 25 year life of the investment? Why were FIT rates announced years into the future if they are not even guaranteed for the current financial period?

(Whilst you may argue that no government would try to stop paying FITs to those who have already signed up, prior to last week I would have argued that no government would slash a scheme which had been planned in detail by over 50% with less than 6 weeks notice. The legal position of a customer who has signed a contract with a supplier who will not complete until late December is interesting to say the least!)

Finally if the intention was for FITs to provide a 5-8% ROI why now reduce this to 4% and will FITs for other technologies be similarly reduced?

 

[moggy1968]

Does the minister believe it is fair to commit to fuel poverty those that cannot afford to upgrade their homes to the proposed required level (cat C) or who rely on free installations as they will never be able to make the capital investment required to finance a PV install themselves or make the necessary upgrades to get their home to qualify for FiTS.
Does the minister agree that this proposal once again damages the most vulnerable and poorest members of our society

 

[Worcester]

@moggy1968 sorry that one won't hold becasue he'll shout that's what the green deal is about

 

[GreggElectrical]

Letter sent to MP.

My question would be: Does the minister really consider that 6 weeks is sufficient notice for a company to retrain staff, explore further business opportunities, and build up enough capital to avoid either going bust or making job losses? If this is sufficient then tell me how.I f not, then explain how cutting the FIT rate this severely, this quickly, helps our economy.

 

[GreggElectrical]

If any one does not know how to write to your MP, use the link below. It takes only minutes. Remember your MP should work for you!!!

WriteToThem - Email or fax your Councillor, MP, MEP, MSP or Welsh, NI, London Assembly Member for free

 

[solgen]

Can the minister answer the following questions:

1. How does the government propose to compensate all the business owners that have invested heavily in the industry, that will now have to fold?

2. If entrepreneurship is being encouraged where colleges and academies are investing in programmes for renewable industries how can they rip the heart out of a fledgling industry where all the ground work is being pioneered by some highly skilled people?

3. When the minister goes on a car journey in the UK he may refer to a map and plan a route. It gives some idea of distance and the time to get to the destination and how much it will cost. What kind of roadmap did the government refer to where it cannot navigate its best prospect for employment in this country?

4. Knee-jerk reactions to these decisions are going to cause major problems in this industry. Please give it some time to respond at least to the original April 12 deadline!

 

[SRE]

Could the Minister please advise why it is appropriate to invest £1 billion into the UK economy to generate new jobs and encourage small businesses to expand at the same time it is decimating the solar industry with a potential cost of 25,000 jobs?

 

[SolarCity]

Where does Greg Barker get his figure of 70% when he talks about the reduction in costs of installs over the last two years? If he can be so wrong about this figure, what other figures is he basing the proposed FITs change on and are these equally as innacurate?

Do Tories naturally have no heart? Do they, in its place, have an unbeating onyx cricket ball. And stone-cold marble eyes. And brains woven from tangled wisps of Daily Mail stupidity?

Actually, you may want to forget about the second part.

 

[docka]

A cut off date for rate slashing of 8th Dec will create a stampede. At the very least if rates are to be cut give installers til the end of the year to satisfy commitments to customers already made and to allow the high standard of installations of most installers to continue, while the FiT rate is adjusted to a fair, sustainable level after proper consultation with those on the ground.

 

[poheZ]

Proposing a reduction in the FITs payments in 6 weeks time will lead to a swash of quick, 'chuck it up' installations. It will give a small opportunity to irresponsible firms with limited liability to cash in on the remainder of 43.3p investment window. This will put the average and vulnerable consumer at risk of parting with £10000-£20000 and then finding out (post December) that they wont hit their SAP calculation or their 'roof leaks' or they paid 'over the odds'. Apart from all the other points mentioned in other posts, what is the significance of choosing a date so late in year that it makes it almost impossible for a consumer to 'see' the performance of their system. Who will compensate customers when all this happens and companies dissolve if they have been effected by the above?

 

[CES Heating]

Can DECC advise of any future planned cuts to the FIT scheme? Figures have been speculated to reach 9p in the future. Can DECC or the minister responsible either confirm or deny that this figure may be set in the future?
With regards to the possible closure of businesses as a consequence of these cuts, has any thought been given to the lack of trust of renewable technology schemes brought forward in the future by governments? Businesses may well avoid any venture into an industry that obviously has an unsecure and unbalanced future which is liable to shock legislation changes made with no real consulation.

 

[AIM]

It is stated that FIT rates are to be reduced so as to be aligned to comparable rate of return on the Stock Market [currently 4%] To maintain parity, and for this argument to maintain credibility, will FIT rates increase when stock market returns increase?

 

[solarfred]

My MP's wife has responded and confirmed he would get my email message today and she was "sure he would be in touch". I hope it is not to ask for my vote.

 

[jerriais]

If the current funding pot is to cover the 25 year lifetime of each current install then why not just reduce the FIT lifespan to 20 or 18 years as this will still reduce financial liability of the government but won't put off as many customers as slashing the per kWh rate as most of them are not really worried about what happens in 25 years, to be blunt either their not sure if they will be around then anyway or they don't trust the Govt to leave it untouched till then (do you blame them?) So let's propose a higher FIT rate for a shorter time period.